Buddhism

Buddhism, which was developed in India more than 2,500 years ago, is based on the teachings of the Buddha (“enlightened one”), a prince who gave up his wealth to try to understand the meaning of life and death. The Buddha’s beliefs were based on Indian religious teachings, which stressed reincarnation. When a living being dies, according to Buddhism, its essence lives on and is reborn in another person or animal. The Buddha, however, went beyond this, setting down what he called the Four Noble Truths: 1. All existence is suffering. 2. The cause of suffering is desire, which is fueled by ignorance of the reality of the world. 3. There is a way to end ignorance and suffering, by severing attachments to objects and feelings. 4. The way to end desire is to follow the Buddha’s eight rules for right living. The goal of Buddhism is to help people stop the endless cycle of life, death, and rebirth. When Buddhists end this cycle, they say they are enlightened, just like the Buddha, and they have reached a state of existence called nirvana.

Buddhism existed in China for hundreds of years before the rise of the Mongols. At different times, it was the country’s official religion. The first form of Buddhism to spread among the Mongols was Chan, which is the Chinese version of the Zen Buddhism still practiced in Japan and other nations. Under Khubilai Khan, Buddhism received strong imperial support, although following Mongol custom, the Great Khan did not proclaim it the state religion. Khubilai’s Buddhism, however, was not Chan or other forms commonly practiced in China. He turned to Tibet for religious inspiration. Tibetan Buddhism is sometimes called Lamaism from the word lama, which means “teacher” in Tibetan.

In China, the Buddhists battled for influence at Khubilai’s court with the followers of a native Chinese religion, Daoism. Daoism is based on the teachings of the philosopher Laozi, and also has some elements of magic and fortune telling. In the end, the Buddhists won, and one of Khubilai’s most important advisors was the Phags-pa Lama (1235-1280). The lama helped Khubilai win favor among China’s Buddhists by associating the Great Khan with Buddhist holy figures. Khubilai then banned the practice of Daoism.

During the peak years of their empire, the Mongols helped spread Buddhism to other parts of Asia. The Ilkhanate’s first rulers, particularly Arghun, supported Lamaism and erected Buddhist temples. But just as in China, Buddhism was never an official religion, since the Ilkhans followed the Mongol policy of tolerating all faiths-that is, until Ghazan banned Buddhism (see page 40).